If You Can't Beat 'Em
by DeMarcos
Summary: How Shawn got hooked up with Lassiter. Prequel to Guess Who's Coming To Dinner…. No Really. Guess. and 1,000 Paper Cranes…. Of Murder? Slash, Shassi, songfic. You were warned. REVISED 2011!


Title: If You Can't Beat 'Em…. They Weren't Tied Down Properly

Author: DeMarcos

Rating: M

Pairing: Shawn/Lassiter (first time)

Disclaimer: Nicht meiner. Nie wird sein. Die Chance nicht mal eines Schneeballs in Hölle. Translation: No belong-ie to DeMarcos!

Summary: How Shawn got hooked up with Lassiter. (Prequel to Guess Who's Coming To Dinner…. No Really. Guess. and 1,000 Paper Cranes…. Of Murder?)

Notes: This must just be my week! At work today, I happened to hear the new Finger Eleven song (I bought their last album and it sucked fat ones, so I was pleasantly surprised) and thought it was cool. The riffs are bangin'. Then I thought about the Wonder Boys here and another idea slammed into my brain pan. It must be my muse and beta Sordes, who's fresh out of the clink. His boyfriend was on the front page of my local newspaper and we were discussing it and other sad Chris Crocker related things.

Since this new drama, I have been chock full of ideas (Olivia Sutton and Red helped too) and it rocks. An even though I have the Finger Eleven song in this, I must thank Loverboy and Robbie Williams this time for being my writing soundtrack. Hooray for noise!

* * *

**Santa Barbara – 1987**

_Henry glared at his son, his arms folded to his chest, a piece of paper dangling from one hand and his posture radiating displeasure. Shawn was sitting, his head down, his bangs slightly covering his eyes, and his arms hung limply to his side. The hustle from the crowded police station was muted by the thick door to the locker room. Shawn wanted nothing more than to go out to the bullpen and talk to anyone who wasn't Henry Spencer. _

_Unfortunately for Shawn, that piece of paper was the reason his father was staring him down instead of watching him from across the room as he set up more poker games with the other officers. He should have thrown it away, but Gus had to open his fat mouth and get his best friend into trouble. Henry had taken the paper Shawn had reluctantly handed him after being ratted out by Gus and waited for the outburst. Henry's eyes narrowed as he read the paper. He then quietly told Gus to wait outside._

_That was two minutes ago._

"_Suspended for fighting Shawn? What could have possibly driven you to punch-" He looked at the paper again. "Larry Drake in the face? Twice?" Shawn finally peeked up to look Henry in the eye. A large red palm mark was stretched across his face. "Larry was teasing Gus and calling him a dork over and over again. I finally walked up and told him to stop it, but he slapped me in the face. So I punched him once for Gus and once for me." _

_Henry planted his forehead in his palm and sighed heavily. "Well, as noble as that is, son, you still assaulted Larry and now his parents are going to be calling me tonight and you were suspended for three days. And Principal Brooke says that you aren't allowed to go with the class to Washington D.C. next month."_

_Shawn jerked his head up sharply. "No! Dad, that's not fair! He was picking on my friend, and I get punished for standing up for him?" He banged his fists on the metal bench and resumed staring at the floor. Henry sat down next to him. "You brought this upon yourself. You should have told a teacher that Larry was picking on Gus and let them handle it. And now you've thrown away an opportunity to go on this trip. And what have I told you about opportunities?" Shawn mumbled something, his head still bent._

"_I didn't hear that." Henry said gruffly. Shawn tilted his head up. "Opportunity only knocks once and then goes to the neighbor's house." Henry clapped Shawn on the back. "Right. Now, let's grab Gus and head home. I have some angry phone calls just waiting for me." _

**Santa Barbara – Present**

_I hold on so nervously  
To me and my drink  
I wish it was cooling me  
But so far, has not been good  
It's been shitty_

Carlton sat at a table in the very back of Tom Blair's Pub, sipping his scotch on the rocks, and glared coldly at the "psychic" and his sidekick, laughing and joking around with Detective O'Hara. He had crawled into his glass of scotch after witnessing the wannabe epileptic close _another_ case that had been keeping him and O'Hara guessing for weeks and he was hoping to drown in the glass when he spied the trio enter the bar for what was most likely celebratory drinks.

He groaned inwardly. He just wanted to get drunk in peace and now he had to deal with this. Carlton has chosen his seat for its low visibility from the rest of the bar, but he knew that somehow, some way, Shawn would sniff him out and come over to gloat. And that was the exact opposite of what he needed right now.

Shawn had ordered the first round and was now talking animatedly to the others about something or other, which made O'Hara and Guster laugh. He couldn't hear what he was saying due to the din of the people crowded in the bar and the sound of the music pumping through the speakers, and didn't really care to know. Carlton just kept watching the bane of his existence garishly act out at the other end of the bar through narrowed eyes. He downed his drink and signaled for another, then turned his head back to the impromptu party and fully took in the psychic detective. He wasn't consciously aware of when he started to do this, but he found himself gazing upon Shawn like a piece of butcher's meat every time he would snoop around the station.

It would range from how ludicrous and unsightly his selection of shirts was, to which direction he styled his hair in. Or how the faux faded and ripped jeans would make his ass stand out.

The first time he became aware the thought had marched across his mind, about three months ago, he'd dropped the coffee mug he was holding, sending the ceramic shards flying in every direction. When he'd noticed everyone had turned their attention to him, including the culprit for his wayward thoughts, he mumbled something about getting the custodians to clean up the mess and stormed out of the bullpen. He'd exited the station and took deep breaths of the crisp ocean air, before taking stock of himself.

_And I feel awkward, as I should  
This club has got to be  
The most pretentious thing  
Since I thought of you and me_

Over the course of the weeks following that particular incident, Carlton found he could only be within a ten foot radius of Shawn for a limited amount of time before he began to imagine cuffing the psychic to Chief Vick's desk, peeling off whatever ridiculous shirt he was wearing that day and experimenting with the younger man's nipples.

His eyes had must have glazed over as he pictured the scenario because O'Hara had snapped her fingers in front of his face and asked him if he was feeling okay. He'd given her some moronic excuse and walked out of Vick's office with a surly expression. As he left, he noticed the concerned look plastered on Shawn's face. And it never got better. Shawn was constantly around the station, sniffing around Vick for a case, having lunch in the bullpen with O'Hara and McNabb, or lazing around Lassiter's desk and annoying the crap out of him.

Carlton never got as much fresh air as he did during Shawn's extended visits.

The waitress knocked him out of his reverie and dropped off another glass of scotch and took the empty. "That's your sixth drink. Bar policy says I have to confiscate your keys." Carlton glared at the woman before finally digging into his suit jacket and handed the girl the small key ring. It held four keys. His house, car, safe, and gun case keys. No witty additions or grocery store discount cards. His keys were as sterile and unremarkable as he was. As he handed them over, mood getting even darker, he told her to keep the scotch coming. The woman gave him a sympathetic glance and turned to attend to her other tables.

He returned his attentions back to Shawn, who had withdrawn from the conversation with O'Hara and Guster, the two of them now talking about something interesting, because she was listening raptly to whatever he was saying. Shawn, of course, was looking away from them, a look of distaste on his face at their current topic of conversation. Carlton saw Shawn begin to scan the bar, his brown eyes taking in the activity of the patrons. Carlton ducked his head down and stared into his scotch, praying that the odd angles of the bar and where he was sitting would hide him from Shawn's prying eyes.

Carlton vaguely recalled the last time he encountered Shawn at this bar. All he could remember was drunkenly revealing some very embarrassing secrets and passing out afterwards. The one thing he had to thank Shawn for was that the day after that, he kept his ribbing discreet. He chanced a glance back over the bar. Shawn saw him look up and turned on a smile that could outshine the sun. He got up from the barstool and began to make his way across the room. Carlton groaned inwardly. Not only would he now have to listen to the psychic chastise him for being a party pooper, but the detective would have to _watch_ him as he did so.

His alcohol addled brain didn't think it could do so without drastic consequences, but he didn't have a lot of options at this point. The waitress had taken his keys and running was too cowardly for him to do. Instead, he took a long pull of his liquid courage and locked eyes with Shawn as he walked up to his table.

"Well, well. Here, I go through all the trouble of planning a nice night out to celebrate the successful close of a case, and the _one_ person I couldn't get to come gate crashes anyway." Shawn sat down across from Lassiter and beamed at him, idly drumming his fingers on the table. Carlton glanced down at the slender fingers banging on the edge of the wood and immediately imagined what those fingers could do on another type of wood. Carlton clapped his hands to his head and groaned.

_Well I am imagining  
A dark lit place  
Or your place or my place_

Shawn frowned slightly as he watched Lassie hit himself and make a sad, almost longing groan. He glanced down at the table, covered in wet ring marks. The glass Lassie had in his hand had barely begun to sweat and the ice hadn't even had a chance to melt. "Had a few too many, eh? I've learned that the secret to drinking is moderation." Carlton glanced up and raised an eyebrow. "Or you know, drinking frilly girl drinks. They taste good and don't get you as drunk.

"Of course, you have to be really secure in your sexuality to drink of them in public if you aren't a chick." At that, a waiter appeared with a brightly yellow colored drink, with slices of pineapple decorating the edge of the glass and a straw that was a horrid shade of pink. Shawn thanked the man graciously and set the drink on the table. He then sealed his lips around the offensive straw and began to drink, his cheeks sucked in and his eyes closed in delight.

Carlton watched him to this with a sickening fascination. He felt an internal timer ding, indicating that his allotted time and proximity to the psychic was up. "What do you want, Spencer? Because unless you actually have a reason for sitting there, drinking that god-awful concoction, the only drinking partner I want is right here." He shook his glass to illustrate his point.

Shawn tilted his head to the side and shook it. "See, that's the problem with you, Lassie. You need to open up to things that don't contain alcohol or bullets." He turned his body and pointed over to Gus and Jules. "You should be more like them. They worked hard on this case, as did you." Carlton snorted at that, but Shawn pressed on. "Yet, there they are. Having some drinks and unwinding from the day's labor." Shawn turned back to Lassiter. "You, however, are sulking in a corner by yourself drinking what is essentially piss and vinegar."

Shawn extended a hand across the table and placed it lightly on Lassiter's. "If you keep doing this, keeping everything bottled up and keeping all those around you at arms length, you are going to burn out." Carlton cast his eyes downward at the hand on his and back up to the psychic. The contact was stirring things in him that hadn't been stirred since he and his wife separated. Maybe even long before then.

_Well I'm not paralyzed  
But I seem to be struck by you  
I want to make you move  
Because you're standing still_

"Listen, Shawn." Carlton gritted his teeth and tried to phrase what he wanted to say correctly. Shawn arched a brow and smirked when Carlton used his given name. "I appreciate what you are trying to do. I do. But unless you remove that hand from mine in the next ten seconds, you are going to find yourself in a situation you may not be comfortable with." His voice had turned into a low growl, as though paranoid that someone would hear them over the patrons and the music.

Shawn smirked at Lassiter and left his hand where it was. He leaned over the table and looked the detective in the eye. "If it's a situation I think it is, I say it's about damn time. I've been throwing hints at you for the past few weeks." Carlton arched an eyebrow in confusion. He muttered dumbly, trying to find something to say that sounded somewhat remotely intelligent. Shawn stood up and moved behind the detective, the hand that was on his now moving up his arm to his shoulder. Shawn bent down to Lassiter's ear.

"Just go with it. Your body language is screaming that you want this. Stand up, get your car keys and let's find someplace less crowded." Carlton shivered as Shawn's breath tickled his ear and neck. An alarm went off in his brain, the thing that always tries to talk him out of his impulses and it told him to stay clear of Spencer, but for once, Carlton decided to ignore it and did as he was bidden. He stood up from the barstool, grabbed his jacket and walked over to the bar, Shawn following behind him. He flagged down the woman who took his keys.

Shawn stepped forward at this point, plastered on his toothpaste commercial smile and quietly told her that he was here to take his friend home and would be requiring her to give him his keys back. The woman, charmed by the smile, handed over the key ring, no questions asked. He flashed her another grin, grabbed Carlton by the arm and led him over to Jules and Gus, who were now discussing the merits of Warren Ellis' work. Shawn had no idea who they were talking about, so he just walked up to them, interrupting their conversation and they looked up at him, mildly surprised to see Lassiter with Shawn.

"Look who I found lurking around like the Hunchback of Notre Dame." Jules smiled, glad to see her co-worker attempting to have a social life for once. She pulled an unused seat out from the table and motioned for him to sit. Carlton began to doubt his original idea to ignore his better judgment, if Shawn was going to make him join their little party, but the psychic put two fingers to his temple. "The detective would love to join us, but I see… If he doesn't get home soon, he will topple to the floor like a drunken prom date." He dropped his hand and looked at Lassiter, a small grin playing on his lips.

Lips that had Lassiter in a tizzy for months. His staring seemed to convince Juliet as to his drunken state. "Oh. Well, I can drop-" Shawn stopped her with a wave of his hand, which contained Carlton's car keys.

"Don't worry about. I have to make a stop by the office anyway. You two stay, have fun." Shawn reached into his pants pocket and pulled out some money, handing it to Gus to pay for the drinks.

Gus gave him an odd glare. Shawn being nice to a drunken Lassiter didn't make sense. Shawn paying for something with his own money did not compute. But Shawn was giving him an opening with Jules, so he didn't say anything about the strangeness of the situation. He and Juliet waved them goodbye as Shawn led Carlton out of the bar by his elbow.

_If your body matches  
What your eyes can do  
You'll probably move right through  
Me on my way to you_

Thank god he was drunk, because Carlton wouldn't have had the balls to shove Shawn onto the trunk of his Crown Vic and taste his lips for the first time in a crowded parking lot if he were sober. Shawn tensed up from the rough shove but loosened up once he felt Carlton's lips on his own. He opened his mouth as the detectives tongue begged for entrance. They remained that way for a moment, Shawn's arm bracing them both against the trunk, and Carlton's hands gripping the his face.

But when his left hand began to drift down Shawn's chest, he had to break the kiss. Carlton didn't look too pleased with this. His breath was heavy and Shawn could clearly see lust beginning to turn Lassiter's normally bright blue eyes a darker shade.

"I think we need to find someplace that's not a bar parking lot to finish this." Shawn panted.

Carlton finally seemed to realize where they were and slowly nodded. He pried himself off the younger man and moved to the passenger side of his car. He really didn't trust Shawn with his vehicle, but as an officer of the law, he couldn't permit himself to drive inebriated. He climbed into the car and buckled up tightly as Shawn got in and started up the car to pull out of the parking lot.

As they began to drive off, Shawn's hand found Carlton's leg and placed a hand there as he drove.

Back inside the bar, Gus was describing the day to day tasks of his other job to Jules when he overheard something that didn't sound right. Two guys had walked in and were walking past their table, talking loudly over the music.

"God, did you see those two guys making out in the parking lot? I thought the guy in the suit was going to suck the other one's face off!" His buddy laughed and said something, but by then, they had moved out of listening range. Gus pondered the comment for a moment. He hoped that it was two other random guys making out and not Shawn doing something stupid. But knowing his best friend like he did, Gus knew Little Shawn was acting up again. He resolutely ignored it and turned back to his conversation with the O'Hara.

_I hold out for one more drink  
Before I think  
I'm looking too desperately  
But so far has not been fun  
I should just stay home  
If one thing really means one_

Carlton blamed it on the alcohol when they finally pulled up to the detective's apartment without him remembering the trip. He had been too focused on the hand that still rested on his leg, the warmth seeping through his pant leg and crawling up his groin. He had barely noticed the car stopping, but when the hand was removed, he looked up at Shawn and it hit him as to how long it had been since he slept with someone, let alone someone who plagued his thoughts like Shawn did. His first marriage was one of convenience and Lucinda was purely rebound.

The last time head had been head over heels for someone, it had been right before he entered the academy. But he'd chosen his career over a relationship and after that, he focused solely on his work, determined to make a name for himself. Marriage had been an afterthought and the divorce had blindsided him. The only reason he was still holding on was that he didn't want to admit that he had failed at something.

Shawn pulled him out of his thoughts with a kiss. Carlton pressed his lips to Shawn's quickly and unbuckled his seatbelt. Shawn followed suit and was out the driver's side door and on the sidewalk before Carlton had stepped out. He would have been amazed at his eagerness, had he not remembered all the alcohol he consumed made him wobbly. With a little help, he got out of the car, to the front door of his building and into the elevator. Carlton took this opportunity to grope Shawn some more.

"Damn Lassie. You'd think that you hadn't been laid in forever." Carlton leaned back and glared at Shawn, who had the decency to appear ashamed at the remark. Lassiter received an apology as he found out how limber the psychic detective was when he jumped into Carlton's arms and pushed a knee between his legs.

Through the fabric of Shawn's jeans, Carlton could feel his erection pressing up against his hip. He moaned obscenely and when the elevator door opened, Shawn leapt off the detective, and took his hand as Lassiter lead him to his door. Shawn still had the keys, so he unlocked the door and entered Lassiter's home for the first time. It was well sized and the furniture had a worn in appearance to it. Shawn guessed it was from his old house before Jules had thrown him the ill-conceived surprise party.

He took a quick look at the apartment, taking in the scattered pictures of family, some awards, and a few pictures of the detective and Henry Spencer. That creeped him out only _a lot_ and discreetly faced the picture down on the end table as Carlton shut and locked the door, took of his suit jacket to hang it up in the closet behind the front door. He then turned back to Shawn and if you asked Shawn about, to this day, he'd swear that the head detective of the Santa Barbara Police Department growled like a mountain lion or a bear and plowed into Shawn, knocking him on the couch.

Carlton attached himself to Shawn's lips like stranded man to a handful of water. His nimble fingers made his way to Shawn's spiked hair, which was leaning slightly to the right, and ran his nails over his scalp. Shawn moaned and Carlton slipped his tongue into Shawn's mouth. Carlton's hands found their way up the younger man's shirt and grazed over one of his nipples. He realized that he now had the chance to do something he'd been thinking about for months.

He broke the kiss and lifted up Shawn's shirt to gaze at his chest. Broad, slight build and a light dappling of hair. He glanced down at the two pinkish-brown nubs and bent his head to slowly run his tongue over it. This elicited a pleasurable moan from Shawn and Carlton did it again, and nipping at it slightly with his teeth, causing Shawn to arch of the couch.

"Jeez, Carlton, if I had known you had a nipple fetish, I would have come into work shirtless long ago."

_Well I'm still imagining  
A dark lit place  
Or your place or my place_

As Gus and Juliet exited the bar, he happened to notice that Shawn's bike was still parked by the door. Since he had taken Lassiter home, he didn't know if Shawn would need a lift. Before he took Jules home, he pulled out his phone and dialed his friend's number.

Carlton and Shawn were kissing and stumbling into the bedroom, shucking their cloths off on the way, when Shawn's phone began to ring. Grumbling about horrible timing, he saw Gus' name on the display and sighed. Holding up a finger to Carlton, he flipped the phone open.

"This had better be you calling me to tell me that you scored with Juliet or I'm hanging up right now." He gritted out.

"Damn. I was just calling to see if you needed a ride back to the bar to get your bike." Gus retorted, tone snippy and put out.

Shawn managed a smile and looked at Carlton. "No, dude, I'm good. I already have a ride."

Gus paused for a moment. "Do not tell me that what I overheard after you left the bar was what I think it was, Shawn." Gus said sharply into the phone.

Shawn's grin turned lascivious. "If it was a tall black guy with a friend who looked like a short, fat Screech…"

Gus groaned inwardly, causing Jules to glance at him in concern.

"And those guys were perverts anyway. You'd think they'd never seen two guys making out before." Shawn heard the line cut off as Gus hung up. He shrugged, tossed the phone down and turned back to Carlton, who was goggling at him. "Sorry for the interruption. Where were we?" He looked down at the bulge in Carlton's pants.

"Oh, yeah."

_Well, I'm not paralyzed  
But, I seem to be struck by you  
I want to make you move  
Because you're standing still_

Carlton gently pushed Shawn down onto the bed and took in the sight of the man lying nude and waiting. His lips were swollen and the nipples he had sucked on were now engorged and red. Shawn's erection lay against his stomach and Carlton thought the sight was the most gorgeous thing ever.

Carlton then crawled on top of the psychic, pinning him with his weight as he fastened their mouths together again. Their hands were already working on each other eagerly. It felt so damn good. Carlton had only been with a man once before and he had to think back to that time. Carlton had every intention of drawing this out and investigating his lover thoroughly, but Shawn was impatient and made a small noise indicating this.

Their breath was already coming hard and fast when Carlton broke the kiss. Shawn wrapped his arms around the detective and began to knead the muscles in his back. Carlton's lips brushed their way across Shawn's cheek before kissing his jaw right below his ear. A sudden shiver gave Carlton the clue. He flicked his tongue out experimentally, tickling the spot again. Shawn's fingers slowed, and then squeezed Carlton tightly even as surprise and pleasure shot through him.

His mouth latched onto Shawn's earlobe, sliding his tongue around it. When Carlton gently applied his teeth, Shawn practically purred. "Ears, I take it?" Carlton whispered, letting his lips brush the apparently sensitive flesh in question.

"Boy, howdy." Shawn shivered again as Carlton flicked his tongue inside the shell. Carlton's lips continued their exploration, once again going down Shawn's chest. "Still have a thing for my nipples." Shawn's voice held amusement as well as desire.

"I like them." Carlton's response was partly muffled as he trailed his tongue down on Shawn's abdomen. He looked up into Shawn's eyes. Shawn was staring down at him with a glazed expression. Carlton opened his lips seductively, and sent his tongue out to lick his fingers. Shawn dropped his head back down on the bed with a groan.

Carlton moved up to crush his lips to Shawn's again as he gently pushed his fingers inside. The way Shawn quivered against him made Carlton shiver himself in response. Carlton felt the younger man's hips twitching upward as he pushed in farther.

One spot in particular caught his attention as he moved his fingers back and forth. Carlton twisted his fingertips over it experimentally, and was rewarded with Shawn's hoarse cry.

"I need you in me, like right now."

The lust that burned between them turned into lightning that shocked every nerve in Carlton's body, hearing the desire in the insistent voice, seeing the hunger in the dark eyes. Shawn's hands trembled as they clutched Carlton's waist and shoulder tightly.

"I don't have any lubrication." The thought fought its way through the remnants of the alcohol running through his body. He peered down at Shawn, who moved the hand from his waist and spit into it. He then wrapped the hand around Carlton's erection, causing him to shudder and groan at the contact. Shawn did this a few more times before indicating that he needed the detective in him. Now.

When their bodies joined, Carlton stared down into his Shawn's flushed face in awe at the sensations running through him. He trembled, dazed by the emotions flooding him and reveling in the feeling of Shawn's heat surrounding him. He brushed his lips over Shawn's lightly once, twice, before he began to thrust into him.

Shawn arched under him, groaning and growling with satisfaction.

Carlton was nearly drowning in all the new sensations. It was the most incredible feeling. The scorching heat and tightness of this embrace was overwhelming all of his senses. He slid in and out slowly, relishing the surprisingly soft little sounds the psychic was making beneath him. Carlton found the noises he was making as incredibly arousing as the clenching muscles around his shaft.

The expression on Shawn's face drove Carlton wild. The thought that he'd inspired that look of pure wanton pleasure brought words unconsciously to his lips.

"Feel so good," he murmured, watching the pleasure building in his lover's eyes. "Seein' you like this… amazing." Carlton ground his hips down against Shawn's, quickening the pace. Shawn groaned again and wrapped his legs around Carlton's back, pulling him in even closer and rising up to meet him solidly.

Carlton lowered his head again, tasting deeply of the mouth that opened so willingly to his probing tongue. Carlton felt the surge of release near as he reached down and stroked Shawn's erection quickly. Their cries blended into one. Hands and knees dug in, gripping Carlton fiercely as the tight heat contracted around him, drawing a rumbling sound from his chest. Carlton's body moved almost on its own, thrusting him in firmly, striking something deep within Shawn that had his lover crying out raggedly. The sound of his first name and not Lassie, escaping Shawn's lips as the wetness splashed between them was more than enough.

Carlton's head dropped onto Shawn's shoulder, and he let his lover's body support him as pleasure shot through every nerve, weakening his arms and making his head spin from the sheer ecstasy.

They lay panting, limbs that were exhausted from the activity still locked around each other. When they caught their breath, they untangled themselves and settled more comfortably on the bed, curled up side by side. Shawn rested his head on Carlton's shoulder, smiling as he felt an arm snaking around him and resting on his waist.

_We'll, I'm not paralyzed  
But, I seem to be struck by you  
I want to make you move  
Because you're standing still  
If your body matches  
What your eyes can do  
You'll probably move right through  
Me on my way to you _

They must have dozed off at some because the next thing Carlton was aware of was a weight on his arms cutting off his circulation. He turned his head and saw Shawn snoring softly next to him. The alarm went off in his head again. He didn't completely ignore it, but he did pay it some heed. He moved to roll over and stand up, jarring Shawn awake.

"You okay?" He asked sleepily.

Shawn stared at Carlton as he stood up and ignored him. He watched as the man search through his dresser drawer for a pair of boxers. A thought jolted through Shawn as Carlton walked into the adjoining bathroom and close the door behind him without a word. He sat up and thought over the evening. He had seduced Carlton while he was drunk and though he seemed to sober up some, as evidenced by how much he seemed to want to make Shawn scream, Carlton now seemed to be freaked out.

This was not what Shawn wanted. He had been dropping hints to the detective for months that he was interested and now that he had the chance to connect with the man, Carlton now seemed bound and determined to not say anything and forget what happened. Shawn stood up numbly and began to sort through the cloths littering the floor.

He had just slipped back into his jeans when the bathroom door opened. He looked up at Lassiter like a deer caught in the headlights. "Where are you going?" He tried to keep the question simple, but Shawn heard the underlying fear in his voice. Shawn blinked. "I just… I thought… Did you not want me to leave?" Carlton sat down on the bed and stared at Shawn.

"If you… Want to leave, that's fine with me." There was no disguising the pain in voice now.

Shawn crossed the room and kneeled in front of Carlton. "Trust me. After that, I want to stay as long as I can. It just seemed like you were ignoring me earlier and I got the impression that you…" Shawn trailed off as Carlton ran a hand through his spiky hair. He turned into the touch.

Carlton gazed down at Shawn. "How do you think I felt when I saw you getting ready to leave?"

Shawn tilted his head up and kissed Carlton lightly. "Let's chalk this all up to a miscommunication and start over, yeah?" Carlton smirked and nodded. Shawn returned the smirk. "So, are you okay?"

Carlton sighed, pulling Shawn up and back onto the bed. The psychic lay his head back down on his shoulder and rubbed his hand idly across Carlton's chest. "Yeah, just a little shocked at the sudden turn of events." He felt Shawn nod his head vehemently.

"I know how you feel. I thought I was going to have to paint a sign to finally get your attention."

At that, Carlton laughed. "What can I say, I was too busy being pissed at you for jumping in on another hard case and closing it and staring at your nipples." He saw Shawn smile out of the corner of his eye.

They lay in silence for a while. Shawn had sat up to remove his jeans once more and pulled the blankets over them before settling back down. Shawn then turned his head to Carlton.

"Have you ever been with a man before? Cause I figured a big resounding 'no' if it took you this long to succumb to my charms." Carlton didn't immediately answer the question and Shawn thought he must have toed a very personal line. Then…

"Yes, actually. A long time ago, before I entered the academy." Shawn blinked in surprise at this. "I met this guy, Jonas, and went ass over teakettle for him. We dated for a while, but I was determined to enter the force. But back then, gay cops were not exactly welcomed with open arms.

"I told him I wanted to break off until I passed the course and was assigned, and he accused me of caring more about the job than him. Then, he left me. You pretty much know the rest."

Shawn knew from living with his father how the force was with relationships. "You buried yourself in the first person who was interested, married her, and she became a future ex-wife the day she said 'I do'. And when that fell apart, you did the exact same thing with someone else while still trying to fix the doomed marriage." Carlton had to agree with the nut shelling.

Shawn then rolled over on top of Lassiter and plied him with kisses. Carlton returned them with fervor. But Shawn then broke off and rested their foreheads together.

"I don't pretend to assume where this will go, but just know that whatever happens, I will not be some rebound for all the bad relationships you've had, because I intend to succeed where others have failed. And I will not make you choose between me and the job. I saw what happened with my mom and Henry when she asked him to." Carlton saw Shawn return to some long ago memory. The look was not one that he ever wanted to see on the psychic's face again. He ran a hand over Shawn's cheek, bringing him back.

Carlton smiled at Shawn's words. "And I won't presume on this either, but now that I actually have something I want, I will also attempt to make this work. But answer me one question?" Shawn nodded. "After how we got started, with the, lets say dislike." Shawn knew there was a stronger word the detective would have used under other circumstances, but not after all that had unfolded. "Why did you try so hard to get me to like you and then try to hook up with me?"

Shawn grinned stupidly and leaned down and passionately kissed Carlton. He then broke apart and whispered next to Carlton's lips.

"When you can't beat 'em…."

_You'll probably move right through  
Me on my way to you_

* * *

Awww… I'm overdosing from the sweetness….. So anyways, I hope this made you happy. Because if not….. eh. I think this is the last in the prequels and will probably move on to a sequel to 1,000 Paper Cranes…. Of Murder? I don't know how though. I've been on such a freakin' roll lately that I just might burn out again. I welcome ideas, though. Since my muse and beta was released on bail, he's been busy calling lawyers and such, trying to stay out of the can permanently. In light of his arrest, I want everyone to boycott Circle K, the reason my muse was wrongly incarcerated. Down with the K, man!

Anyhoo, reviews inflate my ego.


End file.
